First Take SA

The Eastern Cape Health department has conducted a mass screening and testing campaign at Majola village in Port St Johns. This after six people tested positive for Covid-19. It's alleged that they were part of more than hundred people, who attended a funeral at the village, over three weeks ago. One of those who tested positive for Coronavirus is a female prison warder from East London's Correctional facility.

The Gauteng Social Development Department has been inundated with calls and requests for food parcels from hungry citizens. According to media reports - at least 7,000 requests for food parcels have been received in a day. The demand and high call volumes resulted in the call centre shutting down. The department has, however, emphasized that there is a strict criteria in place for allocating food parcels.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has conducted door-to-door Covid-19 screening in Ermelo, Mpumalanga. Accompanied by the MEC for Health, Sasekani Manzini, Mkhize interacted with volunteers conducting the screening, health workers and also visited a Covid- 19 ward at Ermelo hospital

Although Alliance partners - the ANC and the SACP - have welcomed Finance Minister Tito Mboweni's latest statement that South Africa would not consider any international funding that would be accompanied by a structural adjustment programme, COSATU remains sceptical. Last month, Mboweni announced that the country will approach the IMF for relief as a result of the financial crisis brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the tripartite alliance issued a strong worded statement - saying this would lead to the sovereignty of the country and its policy direction being compromised by conditions attached to the loans.

The ANC and the DA have distanced themselves from the branding of surgical masks in their respective party colours. This follows criticism of politicising the fight against COVID-19 after pictures of these masks emerged on social media.

Gauteng Premier David Makhura says politicians including councillors will not be responsible for distributing food parcels to needy households, but will only assist in identifying those who are deserving. This follows accusations in Tshwane that food was being distributed along political party lines. He was speaking at the launch of a Covid-19 Food Bank in Ekurhuleni on Gauteng's East Rand. It is one of five food distribution points in Gauteng where relief donations will be received and then distributed to poor households.

Community members in Alexandra in the north of Johannesburg say they are in desperate need of food parcels to be delivered in the community. Yesterday* hundreds of residents in the township flocked the nearby school in the hopes of receiving food relief after a hoax message circulated in the area. Chaos erupted in the area, forcing Johannesburg Mayor, Geoff Makhubo to visit vulnerable families in the township.

The South African National Defence Force says it does not condone any illegal actions by its members as they enforce the lockdown regulations. This after a number of videos and images surfaced on social media where soldiers appeared to be brutilising individuals during the national lockdown. Meanwhile the military says it will co-operate with a police investigation into the death of a man who was allegedly beaten to death by soldiers in Alexandra, north of Johannesburg on Friday.

Africa - China relations have been rocked by allegations of racism as the Covid-19 pandemic persists globally. Africans are reportedly being blamed for a second wave of the novel Coronavirus outbreak in China. A protest letter by a group of African ambassadors in Beijing has detailed concerns over the reports. The allegations include forced evictions of Africans from hostels, selective covid-19 testing and illegal seizure of passports. South Africa has urged China to investigate the reports. The African Union Commission has also summoned the Chinese Ambassador in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to provide an explanation regarding the reports.

Infectious disease epidemiologist and chairperson of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on COVID-19 - Professor Salim Abdool Karim - says South Africa must expect increased vulnerability to COVID-19 once the lockdown is lifted. As the country enters week three of the nationwide lockdown, Karim, Health Minister - Doctor Zweli Mkhize- and some of the country's leading scientists shared some of the science behind government's decisions in responding to the pandemic. Early interventions like contact tracing, increased testing, and strict regulations around movement have been hailed as positive steps in the right direction. But experts have warned that without a vaccine, the country is likely to suffer increased infection and death rates, scenes seen in countries around the world. The updated number of positive COVID-19 cases in South Africa now stands at 2 thousand 2 hundred and seventy-two.